Does your life look exactly like you want it to? Probably not. Have all of your hopes and dreams played out exactly to your expectations? Probably not. But does that mean we should give up trying to live the life we know we’re meant to lead? I don’t think so. Does that mean we should forget about our true desires and just accept everything that falls into our laps? I don’t think so. Can we cry when we don’t get our way? Yes. Can we throw a fit and scrape and claw to climb the mountain towards our biggest dreams? Yes. What does dream life-design look like in real-life? It involves some planning, some action and some imagination. Before we can really start to move towards our dreams, we’ve got to get clear on what exactly they are.

I’ve compiled some steps below to help you on your journey towards living the life you desire while accepting the life you have!

1. Brain Cleanse

Have you ever woken up with a to-do list that feels like a novel? An amazingly effective practice is what I call a “brain cleanse”. This short but powerful practice involves that insane list snaking its way through your mind. Upon waking, or whenever you feel the urge, purge! Write down every single thing that you are worrying about or that’s taking up space in your mind. You could do this with pen and paper, type it on your computer, or even as a Note in your phone! Simply list out every single thought that is on your mind more than once. It could be thoughts as minute as “set up email reminder to pay bills” or as big as “I have no idea what I want my career to be” …

This is your list so the more you write, the more clear you’ll get. Nothing is too small, or too big, to be included in your brain cleanse!

2. CATEGORIZE & COMPLETe

Now that you’ve got your brain cleanse list, you can separate things into categories. My usual categories are the order of how I need to get things done. They are: Immediately, Near Future, and Long Term Goals; yours may be different! Once you put things into categories, you can start analyzing each item. If you notice that most of your list is in the “Immediately” category, you may want to take it easy on yourself and pause on the big dream items until you get more urgent things done. For instance, I had a friend who had big goals and even bigger dreams, but her finances were wrecked. “Money” was in her “Immediately” category, so we took some to create a budget plan for her. That freed up A LOT of mental space and relief for her to get back to dreaming big!

3. Accountability

Growing up, most of us were held accountable by our parents or guardians. Whether it was chores, cleaning your room, or saving your allowance, someone was checking in. As adults, we still crave this accountability; and it often helps with those of us who have big dreams! Find a friend, a coworker, a random acquaintance, a friend on social media- someone!- that can check in with you each week or each month to see if you’re continuing to complete some of your items from your brain cleanse. You get what you ask for so ask for what you need; you’ll probably be surprised at how many folks in your community are willing to help you out. Take some time to think about what you want to be held accountable for. Perhaps you lose sight of the bigger picture often, or maybe you need someone to make sure you’re getting the small things done. Whatever it may be, know that we can’t be on this journey alone. It truly does take a village!

4. DREAM BIG

This is one of the simplest concepts but often the hardest action to take. DREAM BIG. Perhaps you grew up in a society that only gave you a few choices of what you could do or who you could be. Oh, the times they are a changin’… You can create your destiny now. YOU have the power and the passion to manifest your dreams. But first, you’ve got to know what your dreams are. A beautiful way to plant your seeds of desire, and to figure out what they may in the first place, is to work with the rhythms of the Moon. This is a huge part of my own life journey and the work that I do with others. Over the years, I’ve seen the magic of the Moon bring dreams to reality in a very tangible way. A powerful time, that happens once a month, is the New Moon. During this time, the Moon is in its darkest phase and the energy is ripe for setting intentions. Click here to learn about how to set your own New Moon intentions as you start to create your dream life!

Now that you’ve got some action steps you can take, it’s time to put the pedal to the metal and keep on dreaming. It’s okay to have an imagination. It’s okay to daydream. These things are the beauty of life! You are a Spirit living in physical form and it is up to you to take your dreams to the next level. With the awareness that you have, and the strength of your passions, it is with no doubt in my mind that your dreams will become your reality!